(Another of the circuits where Michael Schumacher holds a race Lap Record that has stood for more than a decade. And one that may well be smashed during the race this Sunday.)
Pirelli previews the abrasion levels and tyre options for the race:
And some info to feed the F1 Facts & Stats geek in all of us:
Of all the racetracks on the 2018 F1 calendar, only Monaco and Monza have longer streaks of hosting Grands Prix than the Hungaroring. Monza’s Italian Grand Prix streak runs from 1981 to today, Monaco’s from 1955.
Winning the Hungarian Grand Prix might not be best for your championship hopes. Not since Michael Schumacher in 2004 has the victor in Hungary taken the title, and out of the 33 Hungarian Grands Prix to-date, only eight times has the winner claimed that year’s championship.
Ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, the lead of this year’s drivers’ championship has changed five times in 11 races.
The points difference in the drivers’ standings between Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel is 17, the third time this year it’s been exactly 17 points, while it’s never been more than that all season.
Hamilton’s victory in Germany from P14 on the grid was the first of his 66 Grand Prix victories that he’s scored after starting from outside the top six.
Looking ahead to qualifying, Valtteri Bottas will be looking to defend his current record of not being eliminated in Q1, which stretches back 64 races to Monaco 2015.
Bottas’ fellow Finn Kimi Raikkonen has the longest run of Q3 appearances heading to Hungary, having appeared in the session in the last 41 race weekends. Interestingly, that record stretches back to Hungary 2016.
The omens are looking good for Vettel to qualify higher than Raikkonen in Hungary, however. The last team mate of Vettel’s to outqualify him at the circuit was Tonio Liuzzi when they were paired together at Toro Rosso in 2007 – the same year that Raikkonen last outqualified a team mate at the track.
Daniel Ricciardo has appeared twice on the podium this season, and only ever as a winner.
Fernando Alonso will turn 37 on race day in Hungary – but the last time the Spaniard won a race, he was 31, when he claimed victory at his home Grand Prix in 2013.
And lastly, for offline reading between race sessions:
Why is it that the FIA decided to skip the Supersoft compound tire now for the second time in a row? We see mediums and softs and ultras, but no supers? Kinda weird to me.
Is it me or are we at least seeing a LOT less marbling on the track at the end of the race…man last year was bad, it looked like Dick Dastardly had laid out traps on the surface.
I dont think so hey, I have a feeling we are just not seeing it that much - aka they are hiding it more. I have seen more tire degradation altho it hasnt been as dangerous as in the past so far.
Found that Susie Wolff interview I mentioned yesterday re women in F1 driver seats. It’s from a good 6 years ago but still pretty relevant.
In the 62 years (when the article was posted) the World Championship has existed, five women have entered a grand prix compared to 822 men in the same period:
Maria Teresa de Filippis - 5 races (1958-69), 3 starts - 0 points
The whole article is worth a read, but the bits relevant to the conversation yesterday:
“Some people get the impression it’s only hard for women to get into F1, but there are thousands of very talented male racers out there trying to get in and never do,” Williams development driver Susie Wolff tells BBC Sport.
She’s right. Even if you are talented, there are still only 24 seats on the grid and only a handful of those - if any - become vacant each year.
There is only a small percentage of aspiring girl racers - compared to the hundreds of thousands of boys - who attempt a racing career, so the chances of them getting through to F1 is always going to be remote.
“Being a female in a man’s world is sometimes very tough,” added Wolff. "You just have to work harder.
“Do I care about what men say at the race track? No, not at all. I’ve always said I race for me, because I love racing. I don’t race to prove a point about how well a woman can do against men on the track.”
Just as well, considering F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone’s recent comments: "If Susie’s as quick in a car as she looks good out of a car, she’ll be a huge asset."
Many believe women lack the strength to cope with the demands of the sport, but Wolff rubbishes that claim. “We have 30% less muscle so we have to work hard, but there’s no reason why females can’t get strong enough to race an F1 car,” she said.
According to Dr Riccardo Ceccarelli, who offers medical support to the Toro Rosso and Lotus F1 teams - and has set up a centre called Formula Medicine which conducts research into how an F1 driver can train to the optimum - strength is not as important as many people think.
“There is a big lack of culture in Formula 1,” said Ceccarelli. "Too many drivers focus on physical strength and not enough on the mental side.
"Yes, you need the strong muscles in the neck and upper body so you can have the energy to drive without any tiredness, but once you reach a certain level - there’s no more benefit. There’s no point putting on extra muscle.
“To achieve the optimum in training, our research shows a driver needs to spend just 30% of their time on physical training and the other 70% on brain training. If you can train the brain to be more efficient, it’s easier to multi-task and that will make the bigger difference in terms of performance.”
So this weekend is Red Bull’s to lose it seems. And it’s all due to totally acurate scientific research. RB hav won every 3rd race this year, (China, then Monaco, and then Austria). And seeing as this is the third race after Austria, it is therefore a win for RB! Yay!
Chalk up another one for Hamilton. Bottas had a brilliant race, but I think the team let him down a little. Ricciardo had a bit of a rough race. Seriously, how much contact can that Red Bull take?
Max summed up his season this far with his “…I getting tired of this sh!t…” message.
Renault has seriously let RBR down the past couple of races. It’s frustrating as a Red Bull fan to see them struggle with their power unit so much. The qicker they can get rid of those Renault engines, the better.
I expected thi race to be rather pedestrian. It always is. The Hungaroring is not built for passing. While there were some great scraps in the mid-field, the top was pretty straight forward for the entire race.
Vettel really did not have a good race at all. First he got help up by a back marker. I can’t remember who it was, but they passed 9 blue flags without letting Vettel through. That and the woeful pitstop competely ruined his race.
Bottas drove like the team wanted him to drive, and he can say what he wants, he is the team blocker for Hamilton and will never win his own race.
Hamilton probably had his easiest drive ever in F1. He was never pressured. Just did his thing and came in first while his bodyguard kept the Ferarri’s at bay.
I think DRic had a good race. But again, of course he is going to go up from P14 to P4, the rest of the cars is in a lower class than his. We all know F1 has become a multicar race.
Overall I was dissapointed with the weekend. I hope Red Bull can sort out their shit, because this weekend was theirs to lose, and they absolutely threw it away.
I take it you didn’t watch the qualifying…it was a full wet quali, therefore they ALL get to start on whatever tires they wanted on Sunday. He chose softs
I have to say I had lovely naps during the race, it was boring and it is starting to feel like Formula 1 Group A, B, C, D.
Hats off to DaniRic, he did brilliant to bring that Redbull home
Botta’s is and always will be Lewis’s blocker - he knows it and willingly signed the contract.
Ferrari will be stupid if they do not give Kimi the contract next year. Leclerc had some bad luck. And I think he needs another year in Sauber to build his skills.
And then I take my hat off to Sergio Perez, he became the villian overnight in the drama that is force india.
But came out the next day and stated calmly why he did what he did.
Üdvözöljük a 2018-as Forma-1 Magyar Nagydíjon!
